Addressing World Hunger: "Waste Not, Want Not"
A commentary by Peter Hawkins
United Church of God Pastor, Bricket Wood and Tonbridge, England
When I was a youngster
my Dad insisted that I finish all the food on my plate. He explained
that there are starving children who would love to have my uneaten vegetables.
At that young and tender age I would have gladly packaged my broccoli
or cabbage and sent it off to them!
Dad, like many others, had come through World War II with some terrible
memories. In Burma he and many soldiers had eaten rodents and other things
normally considered inedible to stay alive. For him to see his children
wasting food was troubling.
Since the end of World War II the Western world has experienced an
almost unprecedented period of prosperity. But the majority of humanity
looks on in amazement at what we waste.
We have forgotten what rationing was like. And in most European and
North American nations even the 'down and out' can turn to
a variety of organisations for help.
But the problem of feeding today's third world communities is
almost inconceivable. The number needing improved nutrition is so vast!
Then there's the problem that food scarcity is also tied inextricably
to local politics, deep-seated cultural beliefs and tribal ways of life—including
the benign acceptance of the 'might is right' view of authority.
Severe weather conditions and changing rainfall patterns also hinder
efforts to increase crop production.
What does this have to do with you and me?
We have a responsibility on our national shoulders to use wisely the
resources that our God has given us. Our Creator inspired this biblical
warning for our benefit: " You may say to yourself, 'My power
and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.' But
remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to
produce wealth ... " (Deuteronomy 8:18, NIV).
How greatly that applies to us today! The United Kingdom and the United
States once spread the Hebrew Scriptures around the world. Yet today
many of our people have been taken in by the deceptive theory of evolution—embracing
a view of creation without a Creator, life without a Life-giver, acknowledging
design without acknowledging the Designer and living seemingly without
a purpose.
Too many seem to have forgotten why our Creator has given us the vast
wealth we enjoy. As we drive by our mountains of waste—our landfills
with scavenger fowls circling overhead—do we ever consider what
we are doing to ourselves through our wasteful way of life? We provide
ourselves every comfort and entertaining experience as we bury our heads
to the real state of the world.
There is too little thought for the unprivileged poor of mankind. We
pour poisons into our rivers which flow into the oceans killing the marine
life. We allow industrial and domestic gases to flow into the atmosphere—then
we refuse to accept the evidence that we are changing the global environment.
How do we explain that to the Inuit who is unable to step out onto their
once-thick Alaskan ice for fear of it breaking off as the oceans warm?
Have you personally considered seriously that there could be a reason
why God gave the world's major English speaking nations their wealth?
Do you know the story of how God gave us our abundant blessings so we
could set the right example for the rest of the world?
It's a story you must read. But first, consider what the Scriptures
say about the national responsibility of a blessed people. Concerning
God's teachings, they explain: " You must observe them diligently,
for this will show your wisdom and discernment to the peoples, who, when
they hear all these statutes, will say, 'Surely this great nation
is a wise and discerning people!' For what other great nation
... has statutes and ordinances as just as this entire law that I am
setting before you today?" (Deuteronomy 4:6, NRSV).
If we would only apply all of God's teachings and then follow
the sentiment of waste not, want not, our blessings could flow
out to many other nations who would then have reason to sincerely respect
our professed Judeo-Christian way of life. God expects much more of those "to
whom much is given" (Luke 12:47-48).
 For
a thorough explanation of why God has given those of us in Britain and
America the vast wealth that we have enjoyed—and what He says
He will do to us if we turn our backs on using it wisely—I urge
you to request or download now the details of this
fascinating story so clearly presented in our free publication: The
United States and Britain in Bible Prophecy.
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